Let’s get to know each other a bit more, as sisters in Christ.

Olivia Spears lives in Kentucky, where sweet tea and bourbon flow like milk and honey. She’s a middle school religion teacher turned SAHM who is married to her high school best friend. She spends her time changing diapers, exploring the crunchy side of life, organizing anything she can get her hands on, and dancing in the moonlight. You can come along for the adventure at To the Heights.

What is your favorite religious text or book?

Do you have a special Saint that you feel a strong connection to? How so?

Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati. How do I love him? Let me count the ways! He was a young saint from a wealthy family who had a strong desire to be with the poor. He was a normal young man, immersed in his studies at university and skiing and hiking with his buddies, but he always made intentional time to be with Jesus in the Eucharist and then to go out and meet Him in the distressing disguise of the poor. In fact, he lost his life at a young age after contracting polio from a sick person to whom he was bringing medicine. His passion for life, Jesus, fun, adventure, and his family makes him admirable enough. But the cool thing is that no one ever really noticed his holiness. In fact, his family had no idea that he daily served and visited the poor until the day of the funeral, when the streets of his town were packed with those for whom he had cared.

Which virtue do you find yourself working on the most throughout your day?

Oh mercy, just one? Humility. Always and forever humility.

What part of your walk with Christ is the biggest struggle?

Jesus has to teach me every single day to trust Him fully and surrender my worries and desires. Bless His Heart, He is so patient with me because I definitely should have learned this lesson by now.

What keeps you Catholic?

My life was void of depth until I discovered the richness of Catholicism. I have seen that the mission and sacraments of the Church is where I can get the closest to Jesus, and that’s where I want to stay.

Do you have a motto / quote / saying you live by?

Verso l’alto (a saying of Pier Giorgio’s). It means “To the Heights.”

What do you find yourself continually praying for?

The healing and conversion of my family and friends.

How do you “walk the walk”?

I hope I do, but know I’m far from it. I do my best to see in every person the God who made them and loved them to the end. So maybe that means looking the gal bagging my groceries in the eye and asking her how her day is going. Maybe that means thinking and rephrasing before lashing out at my husband. Maybe that means abandoning discomfort and chatting with the homeless person on the corner of the road for a while.

How does Christ call you to serve – is it prayer/contemplation/acts of service, etc.?

Mostly in prayer, I feel a strong pull toward intercession for others. But as a wife and mom, the whole service-to-others thing kind of comes as a packaged deal. 😉